Newly hired men’s head basketball coach Jay Spoonhour’s contract has the first-time Division-I head coach locked in for three years, making $160,000 per year.

Spoonhour’s contract, along with an extension on head women’s basketball coach Brady Sallee’s contract, were approved by the Board of Trustees on Friday. Sallee’s contract was extended by three years, while his salary of $86,107 was increased to $130,000.

Spoonhour’s contract, like newly hired head football coach Dino Babers’, has a number of incentives for the new head coach. The “achievement compensation awards”, as they are called in the contract, are one-time, lump sum payments.

If the cumulative GPA of the men’s basketball team is at or above 2.8, Spoonhour will receive an additional $2,500.

Spoonhour will also receive an additional $2,500 if the team’s APR (Academic Progress Rate) is at or above 950. APR is a statistic created by the NCAA to measure the success of college teams in moving student-athletes toward graduation.

If the Panthers finish with 20 or more victories over Division-I opponents, Spoonhour will receive $5,000. If the team wins the Ohio Valley Conference regular season championship, Spoonhour will receive $3,500, but $1,500 if the team is co-champion.

Spoonhour will also receive $5,000 if the team wins the OVC tournament. If the Panthers compete in the NCAA Division-I Men’s Basketball Tournament as an at-large team, Spoonhour will receive $3,500, with the coach receiving $2,000 for each game played in beyond the first round. If the Panthers make the National Invitational Tournament (NIT), Spoonhour will receive $2,500, with an additional $1,000 being paid for each game played in beyond the first round.

If the Panthers are ranked No. 1 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, Spoonhour will receive an additional $5,000. If the team is ranked in the top five, Spoonhour will receive an additional $2,500, and if the team is ranked inside the top twenty-five, Spoonhour will receive $1,000. Spoonhour will receive the highest amount associated with the achievement, and the amounts are not cumulative.

Finally, if 250 overnight campers are housed in the residence halls during the men’s basketball summer camp, Spoonhour will receive $2,500.

Former Eastern head coach Mike Miller, who led the team for seven seasons, made $133,000 per year.

Dominic Renzetti can be reached at 581-7942 or [email protected].